When something becomes popular, it invites criticism from other sources. The recently popular pH miracle diet is no different. As the program has gained followers, it has gained just as much criticism from different individuals.

The main criticism of the diet is that it encourages people to become vegetarians and vegans. Critics say that this diet, particularly with its omission of dairy products (a vegetarian protein source), is dangerously low in protein. However, this criticism comes from the common misconception that humans need massive amounts of protein. The recent popularity of low-carb diets (which are really just high-protein diets) has re-cemented this myth in the mind of many people. Health has become equivalent with eating red meat and dairy.

However, there are many sources of natural and healthy proteins that dont have the harmful acidic effects of red meat and dairy products. The truth is, most people get too much protein and not too little. Women require about 45 grams of protein per day, and men need 55 grams. Once single cup of tofu (which is acceptable on the pH miracle diet) contains 20 grams of protein. Beans contain at least 8 grams of protein per half cup. So it is really quite easy to get enough protein on a vegetarian diet.

Another criticism related to this issue is calcium. Many people equate drinking milk with strong bones. However, American women consume an average of two pounds of milk per day and yet 30 million of them develop osteoporosis. If drinking milk helped make bones stronger, then the opposite would be true. A study conducted by Cornell-trained nutritionist Amy Joy Lanou showed that there was no specific link between dairy products and bone health in children and young adults. There are plenty of sources of calcium available in the alkalizing food categories that will provide protection against osteoporosis.

Many critics also claim that the emphasis on vegetables and fresh foods is the real reason behind the success that people receive from the diet. The pH miracle diet suggests eating almost 70 percent vegetables and acceptable fruits. At this level, whether you are eating alkalizing foods or not, anyone will have an improvement in health. Critics disregard the importance of the pH balance of the diet.

However, there have been many people who have experienced great results after eliminating wheat, an acidic food. Wheat is not a food that one normally associates with ill health, however, eliminating wheat has been a godsend to many people who have suffered the symptoms of over-acidified diets. The amount of alkalizing vegetables in the diet will definitely do anybody good, whether or not they take the rest of the diet to heart. By eating from the list of alkaline foods, you will be improving your health no matter how strict you are on the diet.

This leads to another popular criticism of the book. Many people claim that the pH miracle diet program is too strict for daily life. The elimination of common foods like animal protein, milk and wheat seems overwhelming for people. They cannot fathom going through a whole day without eating something from one of these foods groups. The idea of sticking to a diet that is primarily plant based seems too rigid and strict. However, many people who use the pH miracle diet have seen beneficial results without being 100% strict with the rules of the diet.

Like with many other diets, the pH miracle diet outlines steps toward better health. The emphasis here is on steps. It is unreasonable to expect anyone to do a complete 180-degree change in his or her eating habits overnight. Taking a slower approach to changing your diet will create longer and more successful results. If the diet is followed word for word, it is difficult at first because people are so used to eating a certain way. With time and practice though, you can move toward better health and a more pH balanced diet.

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Most of the talk these days is about losing weight but what if you find yourself in the position of needing rapid weight gain? If this is your case, say, needing to gain weight for a sport you play then you need to do the opposite of burning more calories than you take in each day. You need to take in more than you burn.

How do you make this rapid weight gain work and still stay in good shape to continue playing your chosen sport as effectively as you did before? You will need to be very careful while overloading your body with the calories it needs and maintaining the workouts you need to stay in shape so you build lean muscle and not pack on the fat.

Start by creating a plan or two. One for eating the right kinds of foods to help you gain muscle and one for working out. You will need to balance these two plans correctly to get the results you want. If you don’t know where to start then ask for help from your coach or your parents. Maybe even make an appointment with a nutritionist recommended by your doctor.

Start by figuring out the total amount of calories you need in a day. There are formulas for this kind of thing and then add good calories to each meal until you have a meal plan that will work for you.

If you watched the last summer Olympics seven gold medal winner Michael Phelps, at one point they interviewed him and asked him how many calories he needed to maintain his workout schedule. I believe it was in the range of 10,000 calories per day or something like that. An enormous amount, at any rate.

You may not need that many calories to achieve your weight gain but do not be surprised if you are close to that amount. Keep your meals balanced though, with protein and the right kinds of carbs and good fats. Good fats are the mono and polyunsaturated types found in olive oil and fish.

Keep the proteins lean, protein is needed for building muscle mass. Before you prepare them make sure that you cut off all the fat. It is no good for you. If you like fish then that is a great way to get lots of lean protein in your diet. Shrimp is especially good for you as it has the best source of protein packed into those little bite sized morsels.

The carbs you take in should be good ones also, like whole grain. Change up the cereal you eat in the morning to oatmeal or a whole grain cereal. Stay away from the sugary cereals and the flavored oatmeal instant packets. Too many bad carbs. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables, too.

Use these tips and the advice you get from your coach, doctor, or nutritionist to safely get your rapid weight gain so you can start your next season as healthy as you can with the same competitiveness you had the last season.

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Let’s be honest, losing weight isn’t easy. If you are like most people then you have tried to lose weight more than once; probably several times. You meant well, you were motivated, and you found the perfect plan for you, but even if you were able to drop a few pounds you put them all back on. So, why does this happen, and how can you prevent it from happening again? The answer is to have weight loss support to help you.

How you get that support can vary, but it’s important to being able to lose weight and to keep it off. As you know, there are tons of diet programs out there, and more are being released all the time. But that shouldn’t make any sense when you think about it. After all, if a diet really worked, then there wouldn’t be much of a need for any other diet to take its place.

The reason new diets are coming out is that people have a hard time sticking to the old diets. In reality, they will have just as difficult of a time sticking to the new diets too, unless they can find some weight loss support.

Family and friends are usually the first people we think of to give us some help. But be careful! Not all family and friends will be willing to support you. Sure, they care for you, but they may not understand how important losing weight is to you. So, instead of encouraging you, they will tell you that you’re just fine the way you are, and that you don’t really need to lose any weight. Even worse, some of them may tease you and intentionally try to get you to go back to your old habits. That’s not to say everybody will do that, but you should be aware of it if it happens.

Diet and exercise are the two main ways of losing weight. Therefore, if you can work with a professional dietician or nutritionist then that would make an excellent addition to your weight loss support team. The same is true if you have a personal trainer to help you exercise.

One if the most effective ways to get support is to join a group of people who are also trying to lose weight. Overeaters Anonymous (OA), Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) and Weight Watchers are some of the more popular choices. These groups help because they let you be open about your troubles, failures and successes. In other words, you can feel free to share your journey to healthier weight with people who understand.

Don’t underestimate the power of weight loss support, especially if you have tried diet after diet without any lasting success. The more support you get, the better. Almost any diet has the potential to work, but if none of them have worked for you, then it’s not your fault. Perhaps you didn’t realize how much of a difference having a support team could make.

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There are many different weight loss surgery procedures but the weight loss surgery diet does not vary too much. High protein is essential to promoting healing and stimulate weight loss. But right at first the weight loss surgery patient needs to take it slowly when reintroducing foods to the digestive system.

After each procedure the pouch left by the surgery is only big enough to hold about an ounce of food. The weight loss surgery diet for the first few days following the surgery is high protein liquids only.

If all goes well, the patient can then graduate to puree or baby food consistency foods, all high protein as well. Baby food is a really good choice by the way. It is inexpensive and you can add some high protein powder to it if the protein amounts are inadequate.

When introducing more solid foods back in to your digestive system, you will be told to learn to chew your food well to avoid discomfort that can become extreme if you do not. Of course if you forget and do not chew your food well, you will only do it once. The discomfort you will feel will be very memorable and you will not forget again.

If you have already had your weight loss surgery you already know the “four rules” you need to follow regarding your follow up diet. The most important of the Four Rules is protein first. Which means that of all the nutrients taken in, patients should eat protein first, then carbohydrates, then fat.

The formula for computing how much protein you should be consuming in one day after your weight loss surgical procedure is 0.68g X your body weight in pounds = grams of protein per day. On average, protein consumption should be any where from 60g to 105g per day. Of course this is based only on a 1,200 calorie a day diet and varies on the patient and the nutritionist who is handling their case.

Some rich sources of protein you can choose from are fish, shellfish, chicken or turkey, meat and eggs. Consumption of nuts and legumes are discouraged, especially at first because they contain more fat than animal based proteins and because they are high in fiber, they are more difficult to digest.

Any foods that cause gas like fresh vegetables such as broccoli, cucumbers, green peppers, and cabbage should be avoided at all costs.

A high protein diet promotes fat loss because it takes more energy to digest protein than the amount of energy it contains so you body has to find other energy sources, like your fat stores, to completely digest the protein you ingest. So it would stand to reason that a high protein diet will trigger body fat mobilization.

Protein is important for growth and development of healthy muscle, skin, hair, nails and blood production. Protein intake is also essential for the healing process and a few extra grams of protein a day couldn’t hurt as part of a healthy weight loss surgery diet.

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